5 Predictions for Content Marketing in 2014

Content marketing is the best way to promote yourself online. We’re not just talking of blogs. We’re talking of everything from the updates you post on Facebook to that funny image on Twitter.

Your overall content strategy will make or break your business. 2014 brings new changes and new challenges. We offer five bold predictions for this next upcoming year.

1. The Director of Content

Expect more companies to start employing a director of content. The director of content will be responsible for taking control of the so-called ‘map view’. They will be responsible for ensuring their campaign meets the business’s overall goals.

Companies have already done this. You can click here to see an example of this. Most companies promote almost exclusively online now. Someone who can take control is now a ‘must have’.

Of course, this doesn’t have to be someone entirely new. It could be just a manager who’s responsible for this. And they might not be under the title of director of content.

2. Responsive Design

It’s not just what’s in the content that’s important. It’s how it’s been presented that influences its effectiveness. Let’s say you have a blog on a website without responsive design. It doesn’t fit the screen of a mobile device. Now you have problems because the difficulty in navigation will put people off.

Responsive design forces content to automatically fit the screen size of the portable device involve. We should see more companies switch to responsive design. Many already have in 2013.

3. Link Earning Over Link Building

Google continues its drive to eliminate the poor quality content we see on a frequent basis. They continue to remove bad content. They have changed the algorithms again.

The emphasis is off specific keywords. Much of the emphasis is on synonyms. It’s a signal for everyone else that we should write naturally and for the reader. Google doesn’t want marketing and SEO to be a mechanical process.

2014 link building will involve using higher quality content with fewer links. It’s essentially a move from quantity over to quality. We shouldn’t complain. Google have been threatening this for years.

4. Custom Content Streams

The likes of Twitter have unveiled custom content streams. This is targeted content marketing on a new level. Each type of customer will see only the content that’s relevant to them.

Companies will have to think about how their content connects together. A list of blogs will no longer cut it. It’s time to create specific content packages for people and get more from your content.

5. Think Like a Journalist

Due to the quality changes made by Google, thinking like a journalist will become the 2014 philosophy. Traditional marketing involves putting out advertisements and hoping it will work. This is going to change.

Thinking like a journalist involves putting more thought into content. Spend more time on each individual piece of content. Successful content in 2014 will be:

New.

Will make the reader care.

Will offer real appeal.

Something that provides something new.

Able to generate interest.

This applies to everything from what you post on your website to your guest posts. It will mean a slowing down of content, but it lets valuable businesses reap the rewards they deserve.

Unfortunately, these changes will mean a lot of sites suffer in 2014. They will fall down the rankings and potentially disappear forever. That’s too bad for them, but it’s all in the name of quality.

Whatever happens in 2014, what we do know is content marketing is only going to keep changing. Start planning now if you want to make this year your year!